Nicole Coscolluella graduated from North Carolina State with her Master’s in Public History in 2017. She works at a Program Coordinator at Duke University, Department of Classical Studies.
What was your first job after graduating from the Public History MA program?
After graduating from NC State, I was the project coordinator for the Rocky Mount Mills Project for the Community Histories Workshop at UNC-CH; Head of the North Carolina Science Museums Grant Program, DNCR’s (NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources) multi million-dollar grant for nonprofit science museums; and, I was part of United Way of the Greater Triangle’s Community Impact team, helping run its grant program for Triangle nonprofits working towards equitable food systems, education, employment opportunities, and public health.
How do you feel your degree prepared you for your current/previous jobs?
While at NCSU, I focused on digital humanities and museums, which directly translated to accessible engagement and programming at a wide range of institutions and contexts. Faculty excel in challenging students to be inclusive and conscientious about involving diverse and underserved audiences. We studied the history of communities all across NC, which afforded me the historical contexts necessary to do my jobs well. Having that understanding was crucial to establishing trust with community members. I am back in academia these days and I utilize those skills helping to recruit undergraduates to study Classics (the Humanities crisis is real), and, I am in the nascent stages of improving the department’s social media strategy.
The field of Classical Studies has a traditional reputation and I am aiming to open students’ minds to the many avenues they can explore within the field while contributing to the diversification of the department’s student body. We have one student who wants to be a bioarchaeologist who asked me to be on her thesis committee (my area of expertise is in Archaeology). Alas, as staff, I cannot serve on thesis committees, but her academic pursuit is one example of a goal I hope to encourage in students albeit in an informal capacity.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I am in my third season as a beekeeper! I have also started my yoga teacher training, so I will be a certified yoga teacher by next Spring.
